Mar 22, 2011

It's Easier Than You Think!!

Caution!! Personal opinions ahead.

I came across this blog Man vs Debt and his entry yesterday got me thinking.

It seems that some in the full-timing community think that unless you go to their rallies or seminars, buy their books or donate to their web site then you really aren't qualified to become a full-timer. Guess what? It really isn't that difficult.
Here's 4 easy steps to becoming a full-timer.

1. Sell house. According to the experts you can't really call yourself a full-timer if you still have a house
2. Sell stuff in house. This is the hard one as most of us can't bear the thought of not having some stuff
3. Buy 5th wheel, or motorhome
4. Put key in RV and drive away

Really folks that's about all there is to it. While the order may vary for some folks, that's it. If you don't own a house or you already have an RV you can omit some of the steps.

Everything else is just a version of what you do when you were living in a house. We make it far too complicated. Do we really need seminars on how to pack our stuff, prepare our food, learn where to stay, what toilet paper to use, and yes even how to dump our holding tanks. I sometimes wonder how any of us made it in the "sticks and bricks" world. I don't recall someone telling me I needed a seminar on all this stuff before I bought a house or a car. I sure don't recall going to any "rallies" on home ownership or car purchasing.

It has never been easier to full-time. With the evolution of the internet and cell phones you can now stay in touch almost anywhere.  You can handle your financial, banking and insurance online, you can make reservations online for most state and national parks, sit out in the desert boondocking with full internet access via Motosat, and even read what other full-timers do on a daily basis.  Heck you can even keep up with Farmville on FaceBook.  In short it's just like living in your old house. And with GPS you can even find your way home.

Maybe that's the problem for some of us. We are trying to drag it all with us. We want to take all of our stuff with us but unfortunately we take all of our old habits with us too. Full timing is the perfect time to start over with a clean slate. Start by throwing away some of those old habits. I'll quit preaching and list a few new habits I'm trying to develop.

1. Less TV
2. Make better choices regarding the quality and quantity of food I eat
3. Read More
4. Learning to live in the moment
5. Learning to be content with what I have
6. Grow in my personal faith

There is a new generation of full-timers out there and I enjoy reading their thoughts as well. They go to rallies too, but theirs have weird names like Burning Man and SXSW. These are people who are living simple uncluttered lives, people who aren't afraid to just go out and do it.  Here are a few examples.

wheeling it
Bumfuzzle
Technomadia
Man vs Debt
Magic Bus

So turn off the TV, sign off from Facebook, and whatever your dream is, just do it.

Need more inspiration? You probably won't find any single ply toilet paper recommendations or ten year exit strategies here. What you will find is some refreshing can do attitude.

A QUOTE FROM STERLING HAYDEN'S BOOK, WANDERER

To be truly challenging, a voyage, like a life, must rest on a firm foundation of financial unrest. Otherwise, you are doomed to a routine traverse, the kind known to yachtsmen who play with their boats at sea... "cruising" it is called. Voyaging belongs to seamen, and to the wanderers of the world who cannot, or will not, fit in. If you are contemplating a voyage and you have the means, abandon the venture until your fortunes change. Only then will you know what the sea is all about. "I've always wanted to sail to the south seas, but I can't afford it." What these men can't afford is not to go. They are enmeshed in the cancerous discipline of "security." And in the worship of security we fling our lives beneath the wheels of routine - and before we know it our lives are gone.What does a man need - really need? A few pounds of food each day, heat and shelter, six feet to lie down in - and some form of working activity that will yield a sense of accomplishment. That's all - in the material sense, and we know it. But we are brainwashed by our economic system until we end up in a tomb beneath a pyramid of time payments, mortgages, preposterous gadgetry, playthings that divert our attention for the sheer idiocy of the charade. The years thunder by, The dreams of youth grow dim where they lie caked in dust on the shelves of patience. Before we know it, the tomb is sealed. Where, then, lies the answer? In choice. Which shall it be: bankruptcy of purse or bankruptcy of life? Sterling Hayden


What do you think?

Until later.

12 comments:

I.M. Vayne said...

I thinks I likes yer way of thinkin', and also yer way of writin'. Just do it!

Some of them websites that pretends to help the dreamers is nothin' more than a front for helpin' the feller a runnin' it. The fellers runnin' them websites just wants the folks a workin' and a trying to be fulltimers someday to support them website fellers so they can spend their time a playin'. And I.M. a wonderin' if they is havin' a fine time a laughin' about them fools a payin' 'em. Dreamers need to just do it.

Early on I once worked fer a feller that were all the time tellin' us why things couldn't be done. When our competition did it, we had fun a askin' him why nobody told them it couldn't be done. Just do it.

Seems like folks just get too caught up in the plannin' and never get to the doin'. Then we as fulltimers need to look to do new things instead of the same old things just like you was a sayin'. That were why I started me and Nilds' blog, cause there ain't never been one like it afore. Fulltimers need to look beyond there zone of comfort and just do it.
Me and Nilda's blog

Alan and Marilyn McMillan said...

Great post -- we agree...just do it if that's what you want to do, just do it. You can listen to someone all day long tell you how to do something, but you must experience it to really understand what it's all about.

Julie said...

I just have to say...I can't help laughing at your mentioning Burning Man and SXSW.

Unknown said...

Thanks so much for shout out! Totally agreed, there's really no magic formula to this, other than making decisions in your life that align with your priorities and goals.

Hehe, and yup - we do go to 'rallies' called Burning Man (~ 50,000 people) and SXSW (~ 40,000 people). We also are involved with NuRVers.com, a community of us younger RVers working on the road.

Along the Way with JnK said...

Great post...we have always felt the same way. Too much planning can really ruin a good time. We learn every day to live in the moment, more green and with much less stuff!

Thanks for writing this sort of post, it gets us all thinking...

Thom Hoch said...

Let me add my voice to those above who like what you had to say today. A good thought-provoking post. Thanks.

Travelwithwhippets said...

Thanks for the thought provoking post. Couldn't agree with you more.

michelle said...

I think this is what you both have been practicing in one form or another your whole life...you've been living it longer than you think! Thanks for setting that example :)

Anonymous said...

Great post and cheers for the shout-out! Lovely to discover your blog too! Always looking to connect with other RVers out there. Nina

Prettypics123 said...

Incredibly thought provoking and well written! Your thoughts are so clear and sharp that it is almost frightening! Truly. You put it right out there before us. And I.M. Vayne, nobody can quite put things the way you do either! This post is worth reposting!

RV Khronicles of Kevelyn said...

Love this post. Well said and well written.
When we first told people what we were going to be doing, many of them listed all types of fears as to why they couldn't do it. It's a calculated risk we're willing to take. I found this anonymous quote I loved so much, I end my blog posts with it.
Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Sandy said...

Great post! We spend summers "cruising" the in our travel trailer and winters on the sailboat sailing in Mexico. Same deal...lots & lots of folks who want to "sail off into the sunset" but can't seem to give up the "stuff" and the boat is never perfect so they never leave the dock. So sad. If you are interested in a look at life RV'ing on a boat, my blog is: http://travelswithfaith.blogspot.com. Keep enjoying life!